A little confused on something....

[holfishbay]

Everything is doing well in my 150 gallon. Tank Parameters are all great. Dealing with the algae for the new tank setup. I am a little confused on one aspect. I have been doing a ton of research online. I currently am running bio balls in my sump. I have seen alot of articles saying to get rid of them. Than again I have macroalgae as well as red mangroves in my refurgium which need nitrates. A little confused here. As of right now my phosphates are 0 as well as my nitrates. My mangroves are sprouting roots and my macroalgae seems to be doing well also. Water conditions are perfect right now. Should I leave it alone and see what happens?

 

[CeasarIM]

I would just leave them alone untill something happens,thats if anything will happen.I used my bio-balls for yrs with no issues.If it aint broke than why fix it,,lol

 

[holfishbay]

Good point... But just want to make sure I dont have any headaches in the future.

 

[Jeff Trout]

I do think they can cause problems down the road,they work great in FO tanks but I think they will be an promlem with nitrates,
ect.. in a reef tank.I do think they will work good for helping get the tank started but I would plan to remove in the future.

 

[serpentman]

Bioballs by design are little nitrate factories. Given the highly aerobic environment, nitrifying bacteria readliy breaks down waste which is why they do so well in FOWLR. Used in conjunction with a nitrate export mechanism such as a refugium, they aren't too bad, at first. The problem is they also are prone to accumulate detritus and waste which often results in elevated nitrates over time which is why they are generally not recommended for reef applications. I recommend removing them and replacing with LR rubble.

 

[Murphs205]

if you take them out , you wont see any difference in your water , but down the line they will jack your water if you leave them in . yank them and replace with Live rock rubble , in time they will start putting your nitrates out of line

 

[MMOORE0324]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14641959#post14641959 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by serpentman
Bioballs by design are little nitrate factories. Given the highly aerobic environment, nitrifying bacteria readliy breaks down waste which is why they do so well in FOWLR. Used in conjunction with a nitrate export mechanism such as a refugium, they aren't too bad, at first. The problem is they also are prone to accumulate detritus and waste which often results in elevated nitrates over time which is why they are generally not recommended for reef applications. I recommend removing them and replacing with LR rubble.

Couldn't have said it better myself!

 

[fambrough]

Jeff nailed it. But just to be cautious, remove them in small batches over time, not all at once.

Actually, if this tank is brand new, and has no fish or corals yet, just pull 'em all at once and keep testing to make sure the parameters stay stable.

Best of luck.

 

[holfishbay]

I do have a couple corals and 3 damsels, a clown, a goby, and a yellow eye kole tang, and a whole bunch of cleaners.

 

[puffster]

I rolled up my sleeves and just dove into it. Not that bad, mine was on a fowlr though. Saw an almost intstant (1wk) turn around int he quality of the water. Always had trouble with nitrates, now 0 with reg water changes. Fish seem to be happier. The bio balls make really good practice balls for getting my golf swing back into shape, and you don't have to chase them very far. +100 on the swich.

 

[holfishbay]

But I do have 0 nitrates.